Would you dye down there?

FROM going bald to keeping a low-cut fade, women have always been keen to pay attention to grooming below the belt. But pubic hair fashion has taken on a new twist with the introduction of pubic hair dyes, which allow a woman to easily transform down there from jet black today to hot pink tomorrow.

The trend has been catching on like wildfire in big cities like New York, Hollywood, Miami and London and has become a great alternative for those who are going grey or just want to create that wow factor. Just think a heart-shaped design dyed red for a Valentine's Day rendezvous or more recent trends like the 'Tiffany Box', where the pubic hair is waxed into a small square and dyed light blue to resemble the powdered blue box from the jewellery store Tiffany and Company. Then there are those who play it safe and just go for colouring the initials of their lover right where he is likely to see.

Coiffing down under has been given an even bigger boost with the introduction of pubic hair dyes from companies like Betty Beauty. The products have proved to be quite popular in the US and is also marketed on Amazon where the more adventurous can select from a wide variety of shades including auburn, blond, raven black, brunette, blue, lilac, brown, red, orange or hot pink.

Local obstetrician/gynaecologist Dr Charles Rockhead is not at all surprised at the type of attention the nether regions of the body is now receiving and noted that pubic hair grooming is something that is practically expected of ladies nowadays.

"I am more shocked to see a hairy vagina, than I am to see a groomed vagina," he asserted.

"It wasn't a big issue, say, 10 years ago, but it's a big issue now. Now a lot a women are using laser to remove the hair, as well as waxing," he said.

The doctor said women have always been creative when it comes to grooming down there, and have done so with the same level of care and attention they pay to the hair on their scalp.

"You have different styles: the goatee, the heart-shaped, the triangular look. Grooming does not mean total waxing and baldness. It's like going to a barbershop and you see men with different hairstyles there," he said.

"I guess they have become more educated and more exposed. You have the Internet, you have Twitter, all of these blasts that you get from different news companies everyday, you have cable TV. It was more North American, European, South American, now it's a lot more prevalent everywhere," the OBGYN explained.

As it relates to health problems with dying the pubic area, it's a matter he believes is more dermatological than gynaecological since any possible impact is likely to be to the labia which is the external part of the vagina.

"The hair on the vagina is on the skin and therefore, the same side effects that you would have from dying your scalp hair, would be the same you would have there," he said.

Trichologist Dr Hyacinth Oates admitted that she has not done much research about the practice of dying the groin, but at face value, she believes applying dye to the pubic hair could create some risks.

"With colouring, for some persons, you never know who will be allergic, you have to do a sensitivity test when you are doing permanent hair colouring. If you have to do a sensitivity test for the scalp hair, you can just imagine that you have to do one for the pubic hair," she said.

She said she wouldn't encourage an individual to use regular hair dye to colour the pubic hair, since hair dye is usually mixed with peroxide in order for the colour to develop. But she believes even with the possible dangers, people will probably still go ahead with the practice.

"Once it's being done in America, you know sooner or later it will catch on here. You have some persons who are doing it, but I have not heard of it on a very wide scale," she said.

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